Tesla teams up with Baidu for assisted driving features in China

Electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla looks set to team up with Beijing-based internet company Baidu in mapping and navigation functions for its advanced assisted driving features in China.

Tesla will be able to deploy its autonomous driving services thanks to lane-level navigation and mapping data provided by Baidu - one of roughly 20 qualified suppliers of the modules for self-driving functions.

The move comes after chief executive Elon Musk took an impromptu trip to China over the weekend as he looked to secure driver-assistance software to help Tesla with recent declines in revenue.

Separately, Tesla also cleared a key Chinese data security and privacy requirement, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, which will help ease concerns regarding data security issues at the carmaker.

As of 1025 BST, Tesla shares were up 7.26% in pre-market trading at $180.51 each.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com